


Sixty Seconds to Heaven

by freshia



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-18
Updated: 2014-04-28
Packaged: 2018-01-13 00:26:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1206046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/freshia/pseuds/freshia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren Jaeger has many talents, like the ability to whistle, wiggle his ears, and bring dead people back to life.</p><p>(Alternatively, the time Eren went looking for answers and came back with an undead childhood crush. Modern AU.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Six Foot Over

**Author's Note:**

> This fic definitely draws inspiration from the TV show Pushing Daisies (which is excellent, I highly recommend watching it). It deals a lot with death, but still manages to keep a romantic and humorous tone-which is my goal for this fic!
> 
> That being said, it's not necessary for you to have watched it to understand the plot, especially since the plan is to venture pretty far away from it eventually.
> 
> Trigger warning for a mention of (faked) suicide.

Three pairs of eyes gaze down at a pale body, arms stiffly akimbo in a wooden coffin. The satin white cushion lining, tinged pink by the out-of-place red blooms surrounding the heavy wooden casket only serve to make the man inside look that much more dead, like they're staring down at a too-big porcelain doll. Eren grips the side of the coffin and sighs, glancing aside as Mikasa puts a comforting hand on his back.

"You don't-You don't actually need to do this." she levels her gaze at him, corners of her mouth pulled slightly downward. "Seeing him is enough, I think. We can just-"

"Go on believing he killed himself?" it's a dry tone Eren uses with her, staring at Mikasa flatly. "He left a suicide note. You know just as well as I do that if Levi really wanted to be gone, he'd just go. None of this cryptic bullshit." When Mikasa remains silent, he turns slowly back down towards the body with a frown. "I need answers. He saved my life once, it's only fair."

"You were choking on a hotdog." she snorts, arms crossed. "And you were ten. He just happened to be standing nearby, anyone could have-"

"Mikasa."

It's Armin this time who interrupts her, blonde eyebrows furrowed. He blinks at her, imploring, _L_ _et him have his moment_ he pleads.  _You know how much this means to him._  Mikasa blinks once, twice, and sighs, turning back toward Eren.

"Sixty seconds."

"I  _know_ the rules." her reminder is met with a snap that she rolls her eyes at, unclasping her watch and handing it to Eren. She glances around the small room they're standing in, making sure absolutely no one else is around.

"I'll wait outside the room and make sure no one tries to come in. I don't have anything I need to say anyway." she moves to turn around, pausing when she passes by the third part of their trio. "Armin?"

"... I'll go with you." his eyes snap back up to Eren's, and with a reassuring nod he moves toward the door with Mikasa. "Come out whenever you're done." he says, just before shutting the door behind them and leaving no one but Eren and Levi's corpse in the room.

Eren sucks in a breath.

_Eren Jaeger has a secret._

Eyes on the watch, he moves his hand just beside Levi's cheek and exhales.

_Because he gives the gift of life._

The second hand flicks twelve.

As soon as his fingertips brush the side of Levi's face, the color rushes back into the pure-white skin. It's almost incredible, how much paler the already-white man became after death. Eren watches with an almost morbid fascination as Levi sputters, coughing, before opening pale gray-blue eyes and squinting at him.

"What the fuck."

Those  _would_ be his first words back.

Eren had rehearsed a million times exactly what he would say when he came face-to-face with Levi again, nothing but sixty seconds and his own words to clarify the situation. But when he opens his mouth, it's more like verbal diarrhea-

"Okay I know this isn't going to make any sense but just, listen to me for a second-you're dead and you're going to die again really soon but first I need to tell you that I'm  _sorry_ I stole your hamster in third grade and peed on it but you really shouldn't have pushed me in the river that one time, you know? But that's not actually all that relevant and what I'm actually here to ask you is how you died, do you have any idea?"

\- and the only answer he gets from Levi in return is a very blank glare.

Eren stares back at him expectantly, glancing down quickly at his watch.  _Forty seconds left_ _._  His gaze bounces back and forth from the watch to Levi's face, worry increasing as the timer ticked down.

"Um-"

" _That's_  why my hamster smelled like piss?"

Levi finally speaks again, sitting up in the coffin and blinking tiredly, as if he had woken up from a long nap. Swallowing, Eren scratches the back of his head.

"Well, yeah, again, sorry about that… But that's not the point of this conversation!" he cuts himself off with a shake of his head, sucking in a breath and trying again. "Okay, do you remember how you died?"

"No."

Eren frowns.  _Helpful_.

"Er… Wait. Backtrack. Did you commit suicide?"

Levi looks at him like he's absolutely nuts, blinking slowly. "I think I would have remembered if I tried to off myself. Nice to know your listening skills haven't improved in the last couple years since I saw you." he pauses, glancing around again. "Where is this anyway? My funeral?"

"Yeah." Eren swallows thickly. "There's a lot of people. I didn't realize you got so people friendly after high school."

Levi raises his eyebrows as Eren coughs, continuing. "So, you don't have any memory writing a suicide note?"

"No, because I didn't. Is that what they're saying?" He shakes his head, eyes flicking to the watch on Eren's wrist as it counts down. "Wow. So how much time do we have left?"

"Ten seconds." shifting uncomfortably, Eren pulls his other hand out of his pocket and reaches for Levi. "Any last requests, or words or uh. Whatever?"

With a roll of his eyes, Levi flops backward into the casket again.

"Yeah, let sleeping dogs-"

He doesn't get a chance to finish the sentence. Something snaps at the movement, sending the lid of the casket forward with a heavy groan. Wood slammed against wood with a resounding finality, like a judge with his gaveland a faint, innocuous  _click_. Eren lurches forward just a second too late.

Flower stems snapped at awkward angles, with petals strewn ungracefully on the white tiles, as Eren frantically scratches at the wood, attempting to pry the wooden box back open again, to no avail.

Mikasa and Armin are back in the room within seconds, scrambling toward increasingly panicked teen.

"What  _happened_?"

"The-the casket." Eren's hands scuttle across the wood after futilely struggling with the latch.  _Why the fuck is there a latch on a casket. "_ It snapped shut and Levi is still-"

"What the  _fuck_ is going on."

Levi's still-alive voice calls out, muffled, from inside the burial box just as the watch around Eren's wrist clicks ominously.

"Oh, no."

Armin's voice breaks the temporary silence as Eren slumps forward, slamming his forehead into the casket. "Please tell me this isn't happening."

Mikasa wastes no time. Grabbing the latches on the casket, she forces the lid up, and Eren swears he sees the wood splinter. She throws the lid off, scowling when she sees that Levi is indeed still alive and kicking.

"Do it now." she commands, motioning towards Levi. He glances back up over the box, paling at Levi's scowling face.

"I can't."

Mikasa's eyes flash dangerously at that, but before she can say anything Levi speaks up.

"Something on your faces tells me that you brats fucked up." he ignores the venomous glare that Mikasa shoots at him, focusing his attention back on Eren. "I might not be the best timekeeper, but I'm pretty sure it's been past a minute. Why the fuck am I talking and not six feet under?"

"I-" Eren's mouth was completely dry. Helpless, he glances back toward Armin with a pleading look. Armin frowns.

"We need to go."

Mikasa nods in agreement, turning back toward Eren. "Eren, we have to get out of here so poke his cheek or whatever and put him back-"

"I'm already responsible for one death here today, I'm not taking two lives!" jumping up from where he was slumped over, the scowl on his face is evident. "There's got to be a way to…" his voice trails off, guilt ridden. Running a hand through his hair, Armin sighs.

"We can pop the screen out of that window and go out that way. This is around back, so if we're  _careful_ we can make it back to the car without being seen." he glances back at Levi. "I'll go out the window with Levi, you guys go and see who…" his voice trails off and Eren nods. Mikasa gives one begrudging glare back Levi, who returns it this time.

"If one of you shits doesn't explain to me right now what's going on-" he stops mid sentence as a shriek is heard from outside the room, eyes widening.

"That was Isabel. What the hell is-No, I'm going out there."

He swings a leg over the side of the casket, hopping out from it and moving toward the exit. Eren and Mikasa exchange looks of horror, but before either of them can move Armin cuts in front of him, blocking the door and holding up his hands in a pleading gesture.

"Wait! Levi, wait a second." he glances back at Eren and Mikasa standing behind Levi, looking completely at a loss. Sucking in a breath, he continues, "If you go out there now, there's going to be more than just  _one_ screaming girl. Think about this."

The short speech gives Levi pause and allows Eren a chance to interject. He moves beside Armin, mouth still turned down. "Please, Levi. Just go with Armin. I'll explain everything as soon as we're out of here."

At Levi's unconvinced face he musters up the most sincere expression he possibly could manage, eyebrows pushed together and lip stuck out lightly. " _Please_  trust me on this. If Isabel was the one screaming, she's fine, I swear."

Levi hesitates for a few tense seconds more, eyes flashing at Eren's wording. But something in Eren's eyes must have been the final straw, because he sighs. "Fine."

And their plan moves into action.

x

"Now I think you owe me an explanation, unless you want me to hop out of this moving vehicle right now and march my ass back to the funeral home in all my zombified glory."

They weren't quite 5 minutes away from the funeral home, Levi and Armin in the backseat, Eren and Mikasa in the front. Eren sighs at Levi's statement, staring down at his own hands in disgust. A single glance at Mikasa told more than enough-her expression seemed composed, but her hands were gripping the wheel too tightly, lips pursed.

"Where do I even start."

Levi snorts, keeping his eyes trained on the back of Eren's head. "I don't know, maybe a good place would be the whole "bringing the dead back to life". Just a suggestion, though."

"Um, okay. I touch dead things and they come back to life."

"That's it?"

"No." Eren puffs his cheeks out and exhales, craning his head around to get a better look at Levi than just through the rear-view mirror. "But it's kind of a complicated story."

"I'm just  _dying_ to hear."

As soon as it leaves Levi's mouth Armin chokes on the water he was drinking next to him, pounding his fist into his chest as he coughs. Mikasa groans with a shake of her head.

"Can we  _not_."

"Alright, alright." Eren faces forward again, slumping against the passenger seat as he hopes to stop a potential road-trip argument.. "I guess I'll start with the rules."

"Rules." Levi repeats, drumming his fingers against his pants leg. Eren nods, mostly to himself.

"Yeah, rules. Like limitations, I guess." he swallows dryly before continuing. "Number one: If I touch a dead person, I bring them back to life."

"I think I've got that one figured out." Levi glances up to the rear view mirror, through which he meets Mikasa's sharp glare. He levels a flat glare until she returns her gaze back to the road. "And something about a minute?"

"I'm getting to that." he gazes out the window, watching as the trees blurred by. Three hours back to the city, but two if Mikasa was driving. It was a miracle she hadn't ever gotten pulled over. "Rule number two is that if I touch someone I've brought back to life, it kills them again."

Levi made a  _hmm_ noise, frowning. "Is that why I was stuffed in the backseat?"

"Hardly stuffed." Mikasa snarks under her breath, causing Eren to elbow her lightly with a scowl. Armin wasn't one to be weird about his height, but he had no idea how Levi would react after so many years.

"Yeah. It's why you both are." he continues, making a quick gesture to Armin. "Unless you two suddenly get a death wish, no touching me. Armin already knows, though."

Levi gives him a side glance. "So you're a walking dead too."

Eren cringes visibly at the name, but Armin simply nods. "I was eight. I don't know if you remember, but I was always a sickly kid."

"Of course. All the moms would sit around and chat about the neighborhood "miracle recovery boy"." he snorts at the memory. "I guess they were right though."

Armin grins. "Yeah. Well, it was a heart problem. One day when I was outside with Mikasa and Eren, it just… Quit."

Clicking his tongue, Eren clears his throat loudly. He hated remembering that-Armin's face as he just collapsed, being so panicked he did the only thing he knew how.

"Rule number three is the most important: if I keep the thing I brought back to life alive for more than one minute, something else has to die."

Levi stiffens at this, the implication already setting in. "What do you mean,  _something_."

"It has to be of equal value." Armin cuts in, explaining for Eren this time. "If he brings back a petunia, somewhere nearby a dandelion just died. If he brings back a person, somewhere in the vicinity another person just dropped."

"So who was it."

The tone in Levi's voice is dry, sharp, and Eren knows he's expecting the worst. The scream they had heard had indeed belonged to Isabel, but-

"Old man Pixis. I don't even know how he was still alive in the first place." Mikasa answers. Eren's head dips down in guilt, and she glances back at him, gaze softening. "Eren, it could have been so much worse. We got extremely lucky, I bet Pixis would have willingly gave his life for someone younger anyway."

"Doesn't make me not a murderer."

"It was an  _accident_."

Eren shrugs at her and turns back toward the window. Levi nudges the back of the seat with his knee, calling Eren's attention. "What about Isabel."

"She's fine. The scream we heard was her when she saw him collapsed." Eren presses his cheek to the glass, enjoying the cool surface. "They'll just assume he died of old age, I don't think we need to worry about that. By the way, you're going to need to lay low for awhile. People don't take well to the…. Re-living."

Levi grunts in response. "So, where am I supposed to go."

Eren freezes.

He hadn't actually thought that far ahead-and by the look on Armin's face, neither had he. Mikasa lived with Annie, that was absolutely out. Armin went to college and had a roommate all his own, that wasn't a viable option either. The only choice left was Eren's apartment, as risky of an arrangement it was.

He exhales sharply.

"... I guess, my place. I can get you an air mattress or you can sleep on the couch or something, it shouldn't be a problem as long as there's… Y'know, no skin-to-skin contact…" he lets out an awkward laugh, thankful for Levi sitting in the back so the blush threatening to creep up his face is hidden. The last time he saw Levi he was an awkward, short 15 year old. But puberty hit and  _god did he hit back_. If he was attractive as a dead person lying in a casket, he was even better walking around, alive.

Levi chooses to ignore the comment, instead focusing on another part of Eren's sentence-

"How clean is it."

Oh shit. Of  _course_. Eren had almost forgotten about Levi's neurotic tendencies, his obsessive need to clean everything. He swallows thickly. "Aha, well, it could use some work, but…" he trails off, knowing exactly what his tomorrow would be spent doing.

Some things never do change.

x

 

The rest of the ride back was awkward, with most of it spent in complete silence. Halfway through Mikasa turned the radio on to make up for the tenseness, nothing but the top 40 hits and the tapping of Armin's finger against his smart phone to fill the air. After what seemed like an eternity Mikasa finally pulled up to Eren's apartment complex, looking concerned as she brushes her eyes down his figure.

"Make sure no one sees him. If they do, play it off."

"I know, I know." he nods, unbuckling himself and twisting around in the seat to face Levi. "You ready?"

He receives a shrug in response. "As I'll ever be."

And like that, they were out of the car. Eren waves goodbye to Mikasa and Armin, pulling his apartment key out of his pocket as they drove away.

"So, how many flights of stairs do we have to go up." it wasn't phrased as a question, but more of an exhausted statement. Eren raises his eyebrows at the tone, swirling the keys around his pointer finger as they entered the first hallway.

"Luckily, just one. I'm in apartment 104." he gives a backward glance as Levi follows behind him, frowning slightly. "You seem kind of, uh…"

"Dead."

Eren cringes as he starts up the stairs. "I was actually going to go out of my way to  _not_ use that word, but I guess."

Levi shrugs from behind him. "Must be post-mortem depression." Eren purses his lips again as he opens the apartment door, turning around to snark back but Levi interrupts him before he even gets the chance.

" _No_."

He pauses, confused, before realizing that Levi is staring straight past him, into the living room of Eren's small apartment. He swallows and turns back around, following Levi's gaze and pales.

Of course, he had forgotten. In his mess to find something socially acceptable to wear to a funeral, he had completely torn his living quarters apart-clothes were strewn everywhere, there was a knocked over pop can that a pair of socks had pushed off the table. An empty pizza box was on the couch, grease-stained and smelly.

… In short, it was only in a  _slightly_ worse state than usual.

Pulling the door shut again, Eren spins back around to face Levi. "I can explain."

" _No_."

"I was in a rush today to get to your funeral, and I couldn't find anything to wear, so I was going through some old boxes- I actually moved in here fairly recently, haha-"

"Eren Jaeger, open that fucking door."

He levels his gaze back to the shorter man, hand still gripping the doorknob- and dips his head down with a sigh. Levi's stare was dark and intimidating,  _commanding_ even. Eren didn't stand a chance.

"Yes, sir."

He pushes the door open slowly, stepping over the pile of jeans only a foot away from the entrance. Levi shuts the door behind him, standing in front of it with his arms crossed. "Where are your cleaning supplies."

Eren motions weakly to the kitchen area, pointing to a small cabinet under the sink. "I only have a bottle of all-in-one Lysol, though. Normally Mikasa brings over the supplies when she cleans…"

Levi gives him an incredulous look. "Your sister cleans your apartment for you?"

"Yeah."

"What are you, five? Does she also change your shitty diapers?"

"Only on Tuesdays."

Levi doesn't laugh, which is too bad because Eren thought the joke was at least mildly funny himself.

"Go get the Lysol, this place is going to smell like a fucking lemon farm."

 

x

 

In less than two hours, the two of them together had managed to make a sterile living place out of a bachelor's pad, and Eren was more exhausted than he'd ever been in his entire life. Blearily, he plops down in a chair across from the couch Levi was sprawled out on just in time to catch the ten o'clock news.

"So, how did you get this power anyway."

Eren snaps out of his almost-asleep state, not realizing he had dozed off until he glances at Levi, who has his eyes glued to the screen. It's a view of the funeral home where Levi was, complete with a shot of the empty casket and interviews with a few dismayed-looking guests. Eren frowns, internally cursing. Of  _course_ it would make the news.

Now they'd really have to keep Levi in hiding.

"I was born with it, I guess. Found it out accidentally when I was pretty young." he answers the question, glancing back and forth from the TV to Levi's face. "Do you want me to change this? It must be weird…"

"It's fine." Levi shrugs, clicking his tongue against the back of his teeth. "Half of these people talking are-  _were_ coworkers that hated me." he snorts. "Anything to get on TV, I guess. So," shifting on the couch, he turns to lay on his side to get a better view of Eren. "How exactly did you find out?"

The actual curiosity in his voice takes Eren off-guard, making him look down at his hands as he clears his voice.

"It's kind of a sad story, but I guess cleaning must have helped your  _post-mortem_  depression." he rolls his eyes before continuing.

"I was eight. Mikasa, Armin and I all were. I dunno, I probably brought things back to life before this incident, but… If you touched a rolypoly you thought was dead, and it uncurled itself and scuttled off again you probably wouldn't think too much of it, right? So this was the first time I really… Knew.

"We were all playing around, kind of by that woodsy area next to the neighborhood. You remember, right?" Eren pauses to hear a grunt of confirmation from Levi before continuing. "It was one of the rare times we weren't following you around and trying to get you to play with us like the cool big kid you were. I really don't know how you ever put up with us. But anyway, Armin was… Sick. Sicker than he usually was, but we snuck him out of his house to come play. We were just messing around, playing tag I think, but he… Stopped, starting coughing, and then just… Collapsed.

"I just did the first thing that came to me. Mikasa was closer to him, so she was hunched over him, and I was a little further away so I came running over. I did what I felt I should have done, like it was just instinctual. I pressed my hand to his face and... He woke back up.

"We ran back home, Mikasa carrying him on her back. He had no idea what was going on, we thought maybe he had just blacked out. Mikasa ran to his house to tell them what was going on and to call an ambulance, I went to my house to tell my mom I wanted to go to the hospital with them and she was…"

Swallowing, Eren shakes his head. "She was laying on the kitchen floor, dead. I knew it, I knew when I saw her. She was normally so warm, but she was cold and pale and I reached forward to touch her face and she came back. Came back, scolded me for leaving out one of my toys that she had apparently "slipped" on, and let me go with Armin and Mikasa. I knew, then, that it wasn't just a fluke. I found out that if I touch a person I've brought back to life, they'll die, because when I got home and mom tucked me in that night, she kissed my forehead."

Levi doesn't say anything, but looks thoughtful as Eren pauses again. He shifts in his chair, sighing. "And that was that. No matter how many times I touched her, she wouldn't come back. Later, I found out that Mikasa's dad had died as the whole… Compensation thing for my mom. She was an orphan now, I only had a dad, and my best friend couldn't even give me a hug to console me. And now, we're here."

There's a thick pause in the air, as Eren finishes the story and Levi registers the information he was just told. Although he wasn't looking at him, Eren could feel Levi's gaze on him-making his skin crawl. He didn't want his sympathy, he wasn't the victim here. He was the guilty-party.

The monster.

Finally, after enough time of Eren avoiding his gaze, Levi clears his throat.

"I always thought it was weird. June 24th, right? Everyone called it the day of doom. Two dead parents and a kid rushed to the hospital." he shifts again on the couch, moving to his back to stare up at the ceiling. "But all of Armin's health ailments went away after that?"

Eren nods, grateful to have Levi's stare off of him.. "Yeah. All of them. I guess it's a side-effect of being brought back or something. I never got around to testing that, and to be honest, I never plan to." he swallows thickly. "I promised myself I'd never bring anything back to life again, and you were going to be the one exception, just because I needed to know what happened-but you don't even know and  _now_ look what happened."

" _Wow_. Well I'm surely excited to  _still be alive too_." Levi grimaces as Eren pales.

"No, I didn't mean it like that! I mean, since Pixis…" he trails off, looking down guiltily. A few more seconds pass, thick with silence and an emotion Eren couldn't quite put his finger on. Levi breaks it again, cutting through the air with a single question:

"Eren, do you think some human lives are more valuable than others?"

The question catches him off guard and feels loaded, like no matter what he answered it would be wrong. Eren snaps his eyes back up to meet Levi's, blinking in confusion before scratching the back of his head. "Er..."

Levi smirks, an almost knowing, familiar look and rolls over, grabbing the blanket Eren had given him to drape over himself.

"Never mind. It's late, we can discuss this more tomorrow. Turn the TV off."

"R-Right." Eren fumbles for the remote, trying to shake the question off as he clicks the red power button and stands up from the recliner.

"Hey, Levi?"

"Hm." the answer is muffled from under the blankets and Eren hovers awkwardly, lost in the space between his bedroom door and the couch.

"... 'Night."

"... Goodnight, Eren."

 

x

 

15 miles west of where Levi and Eren were staying, a redheaded girl with pigtails was perched in front of the TV, breathing aggressively out her nose.

"I'm telling you, Farlan." her eyes were darting back and forth from a bored looking Scot on the couch to the screen, lips pursed tightly. "He's alive. He has to be, it just doesn't make sense. A missing body, an apparent 'suicide'?"

"I  _hear_ ya, Iz." an annoyed tone was seeping into the Scottish accent as he replied, trying to sound patient. "And I'm not saying he isn't, but the news is over and it's almost midnight so if ya could get out of the way-"

"Farlan."

She was standing now, hands on her hips, still obstructing the view of the TV. He opens his mouth to reply, but she cuts him off, tapping her foot impatiently against the hardwood floor. "He faked his own death. I dunno why, but he did and we have to find him before he runs off to, Mexico or Canada or something!"

Farlan sighs, running a hand through dirty-blonde hair as he twirls the television remote. Reasoning with Isabel when she had something stuck in her mind was almost impossible, but he really wasn't about to be roped into something that stupid at midnight. "Ya know as well as I do that if Levi wanted us to find him, we would."

Isabel squints at him skeptically.

"You know, I read a book like this once."

"You can  _read_?"

"I'm going to shove that remote up your ass." she huffs, marching closer to him and tipping her body so she was eye-to-eye with the other. " _Yes_ , I can read. But in this book, there were clues left everywhere and it was up to the protagonists to find the missing person."

"Levi is not our manic pixie dream girl, Iz."

At the blank stare he receives, he sighs. "Never mind. So what 'clues' has he left us?"

"We don't know! That's why we have to go looking for them." she gives him a proud smirk, standing up straight and proud again. Farlan groans.

"Can it wait until tomorrow?"

"... I  _guess_." she deflates ever so slightly, pouting, before pausing as something catches her eye. Cradling the remote closely to him, Farlan catches the mischievous look in her eyes and follows it to the television device he was holding so dearly to him, before scowling.

"Iz,  _no_."

"Farlan, we really should get an early start." she shuffles even closer to him, her smirk from before back in full blow.. He narrows his eyes, gripping tighter to the remote-

Just before Isabel leaps onto him.

There was a scramble for the black device, Farlan attempting to hold it over Isabel's head and Isabel consequently tackling him, knocking him backward into the cushions. The remote was tossed to the side in the struggle, hitting the ground with a thump as Isabel's laugh was muffled, face pressed against his chest as he had his arms wrapped tightly around her body.

"I hate you. Really."

Farlan laughs at that himself, burying his nose in her hair. "If ya try and fight with a bear, you gotta expect to get," he pauses for effect, tightening his hold briefly. " _Bear-hugged_."

"I'm gonna kick you in the nuts."

"Ya gotta reach 'em first."

The headbutt he receives is, in Farlan's opinion at least, worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND THERE IT WAS.
> 
> Farlan and Isabel play a bigger part in the next chapter. (Shout out to Shaky, the Farlan to my Isabel, and also where I draw the characterization of Farlan's characters for this fic from.)
> 
> This fic is so planned out from top to bottom that I'm almost certain it'll be my longest one yet. I know this first chapter was a bit of an information dump, but the next chapters after will be more relationship-building and fun, I swear.
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> I feel like I somehow need to add a million things onto this, but hopefully this fanfic will mostly speak for itself and I won't have to do too much explaining.


	2. Pushing Up Daisies

"Are you sure about this?"

Eren taps his fingers, nervous, against the steering wheel. He glances back toward Levi who was sitting-somewhat grumpily-in the back seat. Levi rolls his eyes.

"It'll only take a few seconds. In and out. Unless you want me to walk around your house naked, because I've already wore this suit for more than 24 hours. 24 hours Eren. I'll have you know bacteria count quadruples with every-."

Eren tunes him out, focusing instead on the road and entertaining his daydream of Levi walking around his apartment without any clothes on. Maybe they could save the effort if Levi just agreed to wear his old clothes but oh  _god,_ Levi in  _his_  clothes—that trainwreck of thought was effectively derailed with a very sharp kick to the back of his seat.

"Just go knock on the door and keep them distracted. You've got  _sweets_ , it should be easy enough."

Side-eyeing the box of cookies, Eren frowns. He certainly had experience talking to bereaving families. He was a private investigator, after all (Not a very good one, though, considering that it was usually Mikasa or Armin doing the talking).

Helping the deceased break  _into_ the house, however, was a new experience altogether.

Ten seconds of silence from the typically chatty boy in front of him was enough to indicate his trepidation at the whole idea. Levi sighs. "Look, kid, there's an unlocked window in the back with a ladder connected to it; Isabel can't ever be trusted enough to remember her key when she goes out. No one will know I'm there and I'll be back in the car probably way before you're done talking to them."

"I-I'm sorry, I'm just a little jittery, y'know? It's  _M_ _ikasa_ who does this for a living, we just help out sometimes.  _I_ work at a flower shop with Armin, who, by the way, is running the shop by himself right now so you can pull a B&E on your own house."

Levi snorts. "You sell zombie plants for a living? Wasn't there a game like that?." He pops open the car door and slinks out like a cat, crouching by the car. "I'm going in." He declares in a harsh whisper. "I won't head in until I hear you ring the doorbell though, top floor creaks like a bitch."

All Eren hears is the soft click of the car door closing, before he's all alone, eyeing the box of cookies with a frown. Couldn't Levi have picked a time when they  _weren't_  home?

He trudges up the driveway-not a small thing, by any means, but not huge either. It's a modest little semi detached, comfortably sized, just right for three. His skin crawls, thinking about the vacuous space left behind since Levi had to move to his apartment.

He rings the doorbell.

The door opens up only a few seconds later, a shock of red appearing just beneath his chin, with searching eyes peering up at him curiously. "Hi." she says, voice high pitched and fitting to her stature, her eyes flicking from him to the box under his arm and back again. He clears his throat.

"Hi… Isabel?" the look in her eyes tells him that that was indeed her. He starts up again, trying to use his best professional voice. "My name's Eren. I'm a private detective, investigating Levi's death. May I come in? I just need to ask you some questions; you were his housemate, yes?"

She purses her lips and stares at him for a few seconds.  _Fuck, bullshitting this was a lot easier when there was an actual private investigator present._ He tries his best 'natural' smile, though it probably came across as a grimace, shifting the box he was holding. "I understand that this is probably very hard for you, Miss Isabel. If it helps, I brought some confectionaries..." He trails off, observing in muted wonder as Isabel's pupils dilate.

"Cookies" she mouths. After he nods, Isabel grins slowly, eyes never leaving the blue tin in his hand. "Come on in!"

She moves aside to let Eren in and gladly relieves him of the cookies, hopping around the hall, stopping to peek into the kitchen as if looking for something. The floor is still buffered to perfection beneath his sneakers- not a spot of dust visible, the only indication of Levi's recent demise. A cat figurine perched on a mantle catches his eyes when he's jolted a loud stomp against the hardwood floor.

"One second, I need to call my housemate down here." she tells Eren with a serene smile, and Eren only has half a second to think 'Aw, how cute—" before she sucks in a breath.

" _ **FARLAN!**_ "

Eren jumps probably a half a foot into the air. How the fuck does something that loud come out of something so  _small_? He gapes at her as someone stamps down the stairs- oh fuck,  _please_  tell him they didn't see Levi.

But if the man who's now standing at the end of the staircase, exasperated,  _did_ see his undead roommate, he shows absolutely no sign of it. His eyebrows push together as he stares at the girl standing in the center of the room, who looks unperturbed.

"What the everlovin' fuck, Iz-" he stops midsentence as he finally notices Eren standing there, box in hand. Isabel answers the unsaid question for him.

"He's a private detective, investigating into Levi's death. Also, he has cookies!"

Farlan squints at him.

"... Weren't you at the funeral?"

Fuck.

"Uh. Yeah. Went there for, ah,  _investigative_  reasons." Eren tries, trying for the wink-wink-nudge-nudge approach and hoping Farlan wouldn't press the issue. Farlan opens his mouth to protest, but Isabel walks over to him, still cradling the tin protectively in on hand, and grabbing Farlan's collar, jerking him down to her level to whisper something in his ear. He grunts and nods at whatever she tells him and she releases him, turning back to Eren to grin.

"You can start asking Farlan whatever you want. I'm gonna go pour a glass of milk for the cookies. Want some?"

"N-No thanks." he says, not missing how Farlan rolled his eyes once she turned. She sighs.

"You guys need to learn how to  _live_  a little"

Eren almost chokes on the irony.

x

Levi only breathes after he hears Farlan tromp down the stairs. He hadn't even accounted for the fact that one of them might be upstairs- but luckily Isabel's voice could probably summon Farlan back from hell, if needed. He just hoped Eren wasn't standing too close to her. Poor kid would never hear again.

He snakes around between the back of the door and the wall he was pressed against to hide, walking lightly to make as little noise as possible. Finally making it down the hallway, he isn't surprised to find his room untouched. If anyone had been in there at all, it was Isabel. He can tell by looking at the floor, the marks her boots make against the hardwood- but even then, he isn't positive if it was before or after his "death".

Moving fast, he pulls out a suitcase and starts throwing shit into it. He's halfway through filling it up when he gets distracted by a framed picture of the three tenants of the house that Isabel had taken nearly a year ago. It's all three of them, grinning and drunk, blurry around the edges. But what really stands out is their smiles, so bright, like nothing in the world could possibly get better. A rare photo,  _especially_  for Levi, indeed.

He hesitates, hand hovering by it while he tries to decide if he's going to grab it or not... Just as he bumps against it and sends it crashing to the floor from its spot on his bedside dresser.

He doesn't make a move.

Freezing on the spot and straining his ears, there doesn't seem to be anything amiss. Farlan is still prattling on to Eren about something in his thick accent, and Levi sighs in relief. Thank god for his bedroom being over the kitchen and not the living room.

Bending down carefully, he extracts the picture from beneath the shattered glass and broken picture frame, placing it gently in the suitcase. Now what else to-

"Careful with that sharp glass, it'd be terrible if something  _happened_ to you."

He felt his undead heart slam against his undead ribs as he whipped around, suddenly face-to-face with one  _very_ pissed-off looking Isabel. He notes the look in her eyes- not genuine surprise but more like satisfaction, hidden under layers of relief and confusion and maybe even a bit of happiness. He sighs and runs a shaky hand through his hair; out of all the tons of houses he's broken into, the one he gets caught in  _has_ to be his own.

He glances away from her but she continues on, unfazed. "We knew you weren't dead, how do you think you could hide something like that from me and Farlan? Just like you to try and fake your own death. Lame! At least cover up your tracks." she huffs. "Me 'n Farlan were just about to go out and do some investigative work of our own, but it looks like you came to  _us_ instead. So, why'd you do it?"

Wait, she-

Thought what?

"Why did I  _what_?"

_Now_ she looks indignant, eyes narrowed dangerously. "Fake your own death? I had to admit, it was pretty good, creating all that chaos and then just slipping out- So, what, is that kid down there your lover? Going to elope, take on a new identity?"

Levi nearly chokes on his own spit. Isabel watches him, arms crossed, before scoffing. "So I was right! You could leave a suicide note but not one just tellin _-_ "

He claps a hand over her mouth, noticing that she was getting  _way_  too loud and Farlan and Eren were being  _way_  too quiet. He waits for them to start talking again, just as Isabel licks the palm of his hand.

"Eurgh!" he releases her and grabs a tissue from his bedside dresser. " _Isabel_. Listen, I think there's a serious misunderstanding here."

"Like what? Are you trying to say that you didn't fake your death? Because the only other possibility I'm seeing here is that you're a zombie, then." she rolls her eyes.

Levi pauses at the dilemma, before Isabel looks him straight in the eye and breaks the silence "We don't care if you're gay, you know" and taking Levi's indignant sputtering as a cue to continue, she presses on " _Really,_ we don't. I always kind of guessed, anyway, because there was that one time when we tried to do that threesome and you were like,  _all over_  Far-"

" _Izzy_."

She finally stops talking at the use of her nickname, resting her hands on her hips. Levi exhales sharply. How could he even explain… That he  _was_ brought back? The living dead? She'd hardly believe him anyway.

He has to make a decision, so he sucks in a breath.

"... You can't tell anyone."

Her eyes light up instantly.

"So I was right?! You two  _are_  together?" the excitement is back in her voice, and he worries yet again that she's going to get too loud. He tries his best to keep a deadpan face.

"Yes. You can't tell anyone though, because his... his sister." Levi tries, but can't find it in his heart to continue as Isabel shushes him and nods understandingly.

"I won't ask then. And I won't tell a soul. Except Farlan." she pauses. "He doesn't have a soul anyway."

Levi leans over and tugs on one of her pigtails. "You're the ginger, here." he gives her a slight smile. "And of course you'd tell him, you two are practically telepathically connected anyway." She scrunches up her nose at that.

"No thanks. I don't even think I want to know what happens in his brain."

"And I don't even think you have one. Funny how that works."

x

After much convincing that he and Eren really had to go, that they didn't have time to explain this situation all the way over again to Farlan, Isabel finally lets Levi escape back out the window.

" _I'll explain to Farlan later. You said Eren works at that flowershop all the way across town, right? He and I will just drop in some time!"_

Great. Just what that store needed.

He slips back down with his suitcase in hand, tossing it in the back and crawling in behind it. Waiting patiently and watching for Eren's figure to appear at the door any second, he hopes Isabel keeps to her word about making an excuse for him to leave and doesn't try and grill him. But he could just imagine her, practically throwing Eren out just so she can tell Farlan about how he's still alive.

Less than two minutes later, Eren is pushed unceremoniously out the door, with Isabel spouting some excuse or other with a mouthful of cookies. The glutton.

He jogs his way over to the car, pulling out his keys and flopping down in the front seat.

"Isabel sure is… Interesting."

Levi scoffs as Eren turns the ignition on and backs up, pulling off the curb and heading back down the road. "Yeah." he pauses. "She saw me, by the way."

Eren slams on the brakes so hard if Levi hadn't been wearing a seatbelt he might've flown through the windshield. He grips the steering wheel, twisting around to meet Levi's unamused stare. " _What_?"

"Jesus fucking Christ, trying to kill me for real this time? I  _said_ she saw me when I was packing the suitcase. She doesn't know anything about your fucking walking dead magicks, calm down. She made up her own crazy story and I just went with it. Something about faking my own death."

Levi can hear Eren suck in a sharp breath. "She thinks you faked your death?"

"That's what I just said, yes."

"... Why?"

Levi pauses before deciding that Eren's week couldn't possibly get worse, so he sighs. "I don't know, something about star crossed lovers. They both know where you work now, by the way, and whenever we see them we better start acting like newlyweds because she thinks I faked my own death to be with you."

This time Eren accidentally stomps the gas pedal and nearly sends them flying into a stop-sign.

After Levi was done cursing and Eren was done hyperventilating, he twists back around again. "They think we're a  _couple_?"

"Well if you want to correct them and explain the  _truth_ , be my guest. I thought you might appreciate this way more." he snorts, glancing out the window. There's an old lady standing on her front porch, staring at them oddly. "Let them believe what they want. As long as both of our stories are straight, it doesn't matter."

"Straight-"

"Shut the fuck up and drive."

x

"Y'know, Levi." Eren starts, speaking as he chops up carrots for a pot of stew later that day. Levi looks up from the paper he's reading, freshly showered with clean clothes on. Eren continues. "Farlan actually said some things that reminded me of something. We still don't know how you died.."

Levi clicks his tongue. "Hrm."

"I mean," Eren carefully moves the cutting board over the boiling pot, scraping off the stray carrots stuck to it. "Do you know anyone who hates you enough to try and kill you?"

Levi moves his eyes back down to the newspaper, looking disinterested. "Do you want the entire list, or."

"... Is that another morbid joke?"

"Kind of."

Eren sighs, reaching around his back to tighten the straps on his apron. "I'm just saying. You aren't the least bit curious-or concerned- about it? If it was a murder-and someone forged a suicide note, so I'm not really seeing any other option-they're still out on the streets, you know."

"You think I haven't thought about that already?" Levi slams down the paper, exasperated. "I really don't remember anything from before I died. I don't know if that means I was drugged, or what, but there's nothing there."

"What's the last thing you remember?"

He shrugs. "I think I might have laid down for a nap or something. The next thing I know I wake up at my own funeral. There's  _nothing_ there to go by, so I've just been trying not to dwell on it."

Eren dips his head down, turning back toward the stew. "Sorry. I guess I just thought maybe you'd have some sort of lead."

Levi watches him. "And I wish I did. But sometimes it's better just to let bygones be bygones. I can't do anything about it."

"I guess." he stirs the stew lightly. In an attempt to change the subject, he says, "This is my mom's recipe, you know."

Staring at Eren for awhile, Levi finally stands up and moves next to him to look at the pot. "I didn't know you knew how to cook. Color me surprised."

Eren shuffles a few inches away from him out of caution, giving him a shrug. "Everyone should know how to cook if they live by themselves. Can't live off ramen and pizza forever."

"Well, it smells good, anyway." he stretches, and Eren moves even farther left. Levi gives him a look. "Isn't it skin-to-skin contact only?"

"Well, yeah, but-"

"I'm not a porcelain doll, you can stand next to me without shattering my precious fragile life." To further prove his point, he reaches over and claps Eren squarely in the middle of his back. Eren sputters, nearly dropping the spoon into the stew.

"Can you  _not_ do that?" he scowls, watching Levi's hand warily as he drops it back down to his side.. Levi rolls his eyes.

"What do you think's going to happen, my hand burning through your clothing?"

Eren shakes his head. "All it takes is just one-Just one bit of skin to touch another bit! If there had been a hole-"

"I'd be dead right now." Levi finishes the sentence for him. "As much as it was nice, being completely silent and all, I kind of don't remember anything from being dead and it's not  _too_ terrible being alive. I don't have a death wish, yet, so I'm not entirely stupid. I wouldn't have done that if there had been a tear there."

Eren looks unconvinced, but turns back to the stew. "I just don't want to be the cause of another death."

"And I'm not ready to be your next victim yet. Save that for the posies."

He turns around and walks off toward the living room, leaving the newspaper on the table flipped open to the obituaries page.

x

The next morning's weather is bright and cheerful, with crisp air in the early day but a promise to be sweltering by the time afternoon hit. Eren wakes up early—nothing out of the usual, and a little less than an hour later Levi finally shows some movements of stirring on the couch.

"About time sleeping beauty woke up." Eren says as he pours himself a cup of coffee, pulling out another mug. "Want a cup?"

Levi grunts as he rubs the sleep out of his eyes. "Yeah."

"Still not a morning person?"

Levi leans forward, sitting up on the couch, and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Death doesn't change so much, really."

Levi yawns, and Eren is struck suddenly by how attractive he is. Sunlight streaming in through the window, hitting the side of his face as he squints, bedhead and sleepy eyes-

Eren has to pull his gaze away, which is almost harder than expected. He's glad Levi's still out of it, too focused on trying to become fully conscious to comment on it.

"So, uh," he searches for something to pull his mind off of the attractive male in front of him. "I have to work today. You're free to do whatever, really, I guess. Just don't draw any attention to yourself, and if you go out in public you should probably wear sunglasses or something." Levi doesn't say anything, so he continues, "I don't think anyone will try too hard to recognize you, but try not to get in trouble or anything. You're kind of carrying around a dead man's ID."

"What time do you leave?"

Eren glances at his watch. "We open by 9AM, so I've got to be there in like 30 minutes."

"Take me with you."

Eren blinks.

"Huh?"

"I said, take me with you." Levi shrugs the blanket off his shoulders, standing up to stretch. "I can't sit around in your house all day and do nothing. Especially when I'm not paying rent."

"Levi, I don't really care about-"

" _I_  do." he reaches for his bag as he replies, digging around for something to wear. Eren frowns, but he continues, "I'm not going to freeload, and it's not really possible for me to get a job anywhere else. I'll even work for nothing, just think of it as me paying rent. It gives me something to do anyway."

Eren was silent for a few beats while Levi got dressed. "... Alright. We could use another hand anyway. But I'm paying you an actual wage."

"Whatever."

They finish off the coffee and head for the shop, a shophouse downtown, 15 minutes away from Eren's apartment. He frowns when they reach the door, looking inside one of the windows before opening it.

"What?" Levi asks, standing exactly two feet behind him. The new rule Eren set up, space giving. Levi figures that rule will last exactly one day before Eren forgets it again.

"The door is open. I thought I locked it…" cautiously, he pushes the door open and looks around-

And sighs.

"Christa."

A blonde head pops up from behind a row of potted plants, spray-bottle in hand. "Oh, hi Eren. Sorry, did I scare you?"

"A little," he admits, pocketing the keys to the shop. "You're here early."

She nods. "I woke up early. Also…" a bashful grin. "I was hoping I could leave a little early today."

"Date with Ymir?" he grins, her smile giving him all the answer that he needs. "Yeah, that's fine. Actually…"

Eren twists around to motion to Levi, who's standing near the door. "This is our new employee, Levi. Levi, Christa."

"Oh, great!" she claps her hands together. "Nice to meet you, Levi. Armin's going to be late today, so do you think you could cover his morning duties? He usually takes over watering all the flowers at the west end, and-"

"I can help him out, Christa. He's never worked at a flower shop before." he interrupts her. "You want to take over helping out the customers for the day?"

"Sure." she's already making her way toward the counter, pulling out two green aprons to toss at them. "Here you two go."

Eren catches them, and hands the smaller one to Levi. "Over here." he says, pulling down two waterbottles from a shelf. "Sorry, she gets a little bit ahead of herself some times. She's really really sweet, but tries to spread herself too thin because of it sometimes."

Levi nods, picking up the water bottle Eren sets in front of him. He watches carefully as Eren sprays each flower, taking note of the way he looked so focused. "Do you really get a lot of business here?"

"You'd be surprised." Eren snorts. "The shop does pretty good. Helps that when the flowers start to wilt I can sort of just…"

Glancing behind him, he makes sure that Christa is preoccupied with something else before reaching over and grabbing the stem of a weak looking flower. It straightens back up, petals uncurling themselves and color returning like magic. "Do that."

Levi blinks. "So Christa knows about your power, too?"

Eren shakes his head as he carefully wraps a piece of string around the stem of the flower. "She's never asked. She thinks me and Armin dispose of the dead flowers together." he glances backward, toward a door in the central back of the shop. "Back there is a storage room full of dandelions that I use as… Sacrifices. She thinks it's an unused room."

"And that thread you just tied around it is so you don't pick that flower up again."

"Bingo. Not without gloves at least." he explains, moving slightly left to water the plants over there. Levi mirrors his movements, moving right instead.

"It's just you, her, and Armin?"

"Yeah. Having you around will actually be a big help. Armin does deliveries and deals with the business and money side or whatever. I have no clue about that stuff." Levi scoffs as Eren continues, "Christa deals with the customers and does the flower arrangements, I take care of the flowers."

"So what do you need me to do."

He sets the spray bottle down, done with that row of flowers. "All of the above? Christa only works part time anyway." at the alarmed look Levi gives him, Eren grins. "Don't worry, you'll learn how to do flower arranging too in  _no_ time."

Picking up a bundle of Baby's Breath from the shelf, Eren bows and hands it to Levi. "For you, dear sir." when he picks it out of his hands, Eren grins. "Scientific term is Gypsophilia. Also, they smell like cat piss in large quantities."

" _Lovely_."

"Being a florist always is."

x

"Excuse me, Miss Ackerman?"

Mikasa looks up from the book she was reading as a man peers into her office, probably about 40 or 50 judging by the wrinkles and laugh lines around her face. She frowns, dog-earing the page she was at and setting the book on the corner of her desk. "That's me. Come in."

He ducks his head slightly as he enters, hovering before her desk awkwardly before finally taking a seat. She blinks. "How can I help you?"

He clears his throat, glancing down at his hands. "My daughter was... Found dead recently. Apparent cause of death was suicide." he pulls out a picture with shaky hands, pushing it across her desk. "The state's looking into it, b-but I don't think they're really trying."

"I'm very sorry for your loss." Mikasa means it with all sincerity. A child having to see their parent die is terrible, but a parent having their child die is even worse. She glances at the photo, before looking back up at him. "Is there a reason, though, that you suspect-"

"There was a note that she apparently left. But I can't accept that—she never..."

He cuts off and stares back down at his lap again as she purses her lips. "A note?"

"It didn't even sound like her, but we can't prove that..."

Mikasa clears her throat, familiarity of the situation ringing all to clear. "I understand. I promise we will find the truth for your daughter. May I have her name?"

The man looks back up, slight smile on his face for the first time since he entered her office. "Thank you so much. Her name was Petra. Petra Ral."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I'm really sorry for the cliffhanger (it wasn't there to begin with but since this chapter was yet ANOTHER chapter of building without much going on, Jerri my beta suggested I add a little something extra in. This wasn't exactly what she had in mind, I don't think, but blame her anyway. Love you Jerri.) but not really actually.
> 
> Mildly surprised at the attention this fic has gotten already! I kind of figured it would be more niche, since it's technically part of two fandoms. Thank all of you guys so much!


	3. Rigor Mortis

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the rating got bumped up, but not for ereri. instead there's a lesbian sex scene at the very end.
> 
> (i'd apologize because I was just planning on fading out, but the lesbian in me just kept typing. don't worry, i've got a plan for ereri that's coming later!)

The bell above the door jingles as Mikasa enters the flower shop, sweeping her eyes across the store until they finally land on Levi. She scowls and stiffens, lips twitching in repulsion and settling into an impassionate stare, all in half a second. Levi simply stares back.

"Where's Eren."

The question is short and straightforward, befitting of her personality. Before Levi could retort something highly caustic and sarcastic, however, the brunette in question pops his head up from behind a display of brightly colored posies.

"Mikasa? What's up?"

Her eyes flicker back to Levi for a moment before she answers him. "New case." she whispers as she turns around to check on Christa across the room. She doesn't seem to be listening, so Mikasa continues in her hushed tone, "A young woman, apparent cause of death is suicide. However…"

Eren's eyebrows shoot up and he gapes. Mikasa gives a single nod before both their eyes dart toward Levi, poorly concealing his attempt to listen in on their conversation with a plastic spritzer pointed towards himself instead of the carnations.

"From the details, it doesn't  _sound_ like a coincidence." She rolls her eyes and continues, pulling out a file from her bag. She hands it over to Eren who flips it up with a frown. He doesn't get past the first sentence before he hears someone suck in a breath behind him.

" _Petra_."

He's staring at the picture clipped onto the inside of the folder like it's physically painful, the girl smiling with a piece of golden hair tucked behind her ear like it's the best day of her life. Not a care in the world. Mikasa raises an eyebrow.

"You knew her?"

"Petra Ral. Yeah, I worked with her." he's still staring warily at the picture, grasping at the spritzer tightly, before he turns as if maybe he could make the pain go away. "Knew her since she was a kid, my mum looked after her when her mother was busy." He pauses and idly lifts a drooping lily "-they're claiming suicide? No, there's no way. Not her, not how I knew her anyway."

"That's exactly what her father said." Mikasa says, tucking the folder back into her bag. "We need to get down to the morgue, Eren." her eyes dart back toward Levi with a scowl and adds as a reluctant afterthought "You too, grumpy."

He snorts. "Jesus, ever think that I may not  _want_ to talk to my dead ex-colleague?"

"Didn't realize you were so opposed to finding the truth-"

"I'm pretty sure this is more of a money thing for you."

Mikasa grinds her molars together and bares her teeth, taking a large step forward, while Levi mirrors her, placing the spritzer down and squaring his shoulders as he strides forward, only to have Eren gently but firmly push Mikasa back.

"Guys, stop. Levi, you don't have to go if you don't want to."

"I'll go. It's just funny to watch Little Miss Rottweiler here get so worked up." he relaxes his tense muscles and slinks away, smirking as he sees her eyes narrow dangerously in his peripheral vision.

"Listen here old man, we don't know if Eren can revive someone he's already brought back if they  _die again_. Push your luck again and I'll personally test that theory-"

"Leviiiii!"

Eren and Mikasa freeze at the voice, stunned at the sheer high frequency, Levi thinks sourly as he pushes his head into a bouquet of multicolored roses, belatedly remembering the presence of thorns.

"No, not  _now_ _-_ "

Alas, the chimes of the door bell cease just as a small palm makes contact with his back with a resounding smack, before thin arms circle around his waist and administer a loving Heimlich manoeuvre. As he tries to breathe, he prays for Farlan's swift arrival to detach Isabel; the boy was never far from her.

"... Good afternoon, Isabel."

He hears a snort from behind him as she releases him and shuffles her way in front, smirking. "Afternoon? It's twelve. That's morning for me, you know." She sniffs the air around her as she took in her surroundings. Damned girl must be looking for breakfast.

Levi feels his heart jam into his windpipe then, as her gaze lands on Eren, a conspirational little smile twitching on her lips. "Just thought we'd stop by."

_Don't say anything stupid._ Levi thinks as she introduces herself to Mikasa, eyes twinkling in recognition as she remarks "Ah, so  _you're_  Eren's sister, I've heard so muc—"

"Izzy, what did we agree about talking to strangers without me around?" Levi turns around, unsurprised to see Farlan standing not far behind him. He gives a short nod that Farlan returns, but not before his eyes rake down Levi. Oh  _right_ , it was the first time that he had seen him since Levi's "death".

Farlan moves from his spot at the door frame to reveal a bucket of tall sunflowers, which waddled into the room to then reveal an Armin who was, surprisingly, not breaking a sweat at the hard labour. He freezes when he sees the gathering of people in the middle of the shop, eyebrows drawing in. Eren pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs.

"Armin, there's a new case."

"A new what?"

"Butt  _out_ , Isabel."

Levi elbows her sharply in the ribs as Armin places the flowers next to Christa and trots over to the group. Mikasa nods at him as he stands next to her, seemingly distracted from Levi's earlier snark. "If we're all here, let's go."

Eren peers over at Christa, who was still flipping through a magazine, the embodiment of obliviousness. "Christa is leaving in ten minutes; if we all go we'll have to close the shop."

Across the room, Christa glances up at the mention of her name, but Isabel interrupts, "Hey! How about me and Farlan watch it for a little bit? We didn't have anything planned today anyway. Right, Farlan?"

Her smile is sunny and promised unspeakable pain at any dissent, so Farlan gives an irritated sigh behind her and hisses out of earshot. "I wasn't aware you were planning my schedule now."

She shoots him a devilish grin. "Well, you are now. You don't have anything to worry about here Eren," She spins as she gestures to the interior of the shop, knocking a small floret to the floor and decapitating a blooming violet in her zeal.

Mikasa looks wary, but relents with a sigh. "I guess that settles it. We need to get down there as soon as we can. Let's head out now."

Eren shoots Levi a look, but he shakes his head and motions for him to follow Mikasa and Armin out the door as he lagged behind. As they shuffled out together, Levi whipped back towards Isabel.

"What are you playing at, you ginger menace"

She gives him another grin. "I don't know what you're talking abouuut." she replies in a sing-song voice. Levi grabs her face, squishing her cheeks between thumb and forefinger.

"Nothing illegal," he warns. "Don't touch anything sharp or flammable either. No stealing any money from the register,  _both_ of you." his eyes flick up to Farlan briefly, who shrugs.

She pokes her tongue out at him between squished cheeks, and Levi releases her, heading towards the door after turning and jabbing a finger in her face. "I'm onto you, Magnolia. I know your game."

The car outside honks twice, and Levi's eyebrow twitches.

"You worry too much." she replies, shoving him toward the door. "Sounds like  _you're_ the one doing the illegal stuff here, anyway. Go,  _Go."_ She shoos "You wouldn't want to make your partners in crime wait!"

He scowls as she pushes him out the door, waving cheerfully at them from inside. She watches them all the way until they drive off, leaning against the wall and frowning at Farlan once they're gone.

"You know,  _we_ used to be his partners in crime…"

x

Levi wasn't exactly sure how they were supposed to get in to  _see_ the dead body, but now he was pretty sure it wasn't a problem.

There's a single person sitting at a desk when they enter the morgue, and as soon as their gang enters their eyes light up like Isabel before a bake sale. Brown hair tied back into a single ponytail and bright brown eyes hidden behind glasses, it's obvious they've all done this routine before.

"Well! It's been awhile. Nice to see you all again, another case to do?"

Mikasa nods, pulling out the file and sliding it toward them. "Yeah. Petra Ral, apparent cause of death was suicide."

They pull out the photo and examine it for a moment, before clearing their throat. "Yep, I recognize her. Here, number is…" whipping out a piece of paper, they scribble down something and hand it over to Mikasa. "You know what to do; go work your magic."

They wink at Eren, before their eyes slide over to Levi. Blinking once, twice, they open their mouth. "Oh! Brought someone new today?"

Mikasa grits her teeth, but Eren nods. "Ah, yeah. This is Levi."

Suddenly leaning across the table, they extend a single hand out to him. "Well! Nice to meet you, Levi. I'm Hange Zoe."

Levi stares at the extended hand, flecked with crumbs and  _is that blood?_  Levi doesn't have time to pull the hand sanitizer from his pocket before his hand was grabbed and shaken vigorously. "I'm sure you  _know_  already, yeah?" They winked exaggeratedly behind thick lenses and sits back down. He jolts when Mikasa jerks Eren to the left with a warning glare, and Levi backs away warily as well.

Eren realizes with a start that he had been standing  _dangerously_ close to Levi. He swallows thickly. Now he was moving toward him subconsciously,  _great_.

Impatient, Mikasa clears her throat. "Well, let's get this over with."

They push past the doors and head into the morgue itself, Mikasa scanning the numbers of the cadaver storages with ease. It took her less than two minutes to find the one they needed; if Levi hadn't known better he would have thought she worked there.

She pulls out the drawer and Levi has to suck in a breath at the sight of pale, bloodless  _corpse._ No doubt, it was Petra Ral.

Eren's lips are pressed into a fine line as he stares down, voice slightly forced when he asks, "Everyone ready?"

Levi wasn't even sure if he could answer that question honestly. But everyone else gave a small nod, so he did too, and held his breath as Mikasa pressed the timer on her watch and Eren touched the small blonde girl's shoulder.

The effect was immediate, the cheeks flushed with colour as her eyes fluttered opened dazedly. They bounced around to each of them, but before she can say anything, Armin speaks for the first time with surprising clarity and confidence.

"Petra Ral. You are dead, in a morgue. We have precisely sixty seconds to talk to you and ask you a few questions about your death, after that we'll take any last requests. Okay?"

She blinks and nods, still confused, but cooperative and calm, considering the situation. Armin sighs in relief as all eyes fall onto Levi. He steps forward with lips pressed in a grim line. No  _time_ for hesitance.

Her eyes light up with recognition immediately as she sees him. "Levi! How are you?"

"Alive." he responds sharply. "Petra…Did you kill yourself?"

Her eyes cloud over with confusion. "No? Of course not, Levi. I wouldn't-"

"Yeah, didn't think so." he feels bad for interrupting her, but the pressing urgency to move this conversation along was critical. "So you were murdered then and it was framed as a suicide. Can you remember anything about that?"

Petra frowns as her eyebrows push together, thinking. "It's blurry. Really blurry." she kisses her teeth. "But I remember someone putting a… Bag over my head? Something like that. I had something to drink right before that, too."

Levi gives her a confused look, glancing back up to Mikasa. "Were there any drugs in her system?"

"Just the ones she apparently overdosed on." she answers. "Also, thirty seconds. Wrap it up."

He gives her a pained look, dropping his voice down and leaning closer to her. "I'm sorry."

She gives him a slight smile, and gently holds his hand. Levi is shocked at the warmth she exudes.

Armin arches an eyebrow, but doesn't comment. "Thank you, Petra. Any last requests before your time is up?"

Petra frowns again, before giving a slight nod. "Yeah," she directs her attention back toward Levi, scowling. "Tell that bastard Auruo he's an idiot-and also,  _yes_."

Levi opens his mouth to ask what she means, but Mikasa announces " _time up_ " and Eren's hand darts out to her shoulder again before he can even get the first word out. Her body goes limp, lifeless once more, and they all stand there for a second.

Her hand is cold and unmoving in his.

Mikasa is the first to break the stillness, moving to lock her back up in the box again. The other three shuffle out of her way, Eren being cautious to keep his distance from both Armin and Levi.

Finally, after thanking Hange and completing the administrative procedures, Mikasa starts toward the door. "Well, we confirmed what we already thought and got some more information. Thank you, Armin, Eren… Levi." she sends a curt nod to all of them. "I… Need to do some more research, I'll catch you up on the rest of it later."

They shuffle back out the door, past Hange who was waving and shouting goodbyes, and started back toward the flower shop.

The ride back felt a lot more subdued, at least to Levi.

x

Later that night, Levi speaks up as Eren shovels ramen into his mouth, slurping noisily.

"... What if I told you I might know who the next target will be?"

Eren pauses in his eating, staring at Levi from across the table, with noodles still dangling from him mouth. "Well, I guessh that would be bad for Mikasha's bushiness."

Levi sends him such a heavy glare that it makes Eren unconsciously swallow the food. "Oh, jeez, calm down. I was kidding." he sucks down another mouthful before speaking again, kicking his feet slightly under the table. "We could try and warn them, maybe, but there's almost no way we can do that without being suspicious… The authorities are out, they're chalking all this up to suicide." Thoughtfully, he places the now-empty bowl back onto the surface.

"I honestly don't really know, unless we tried to protect them ourselves." he sends Levi a look. "Are you thinking another coworker-?"

Levi nods. "Yeah, I am. There were four that were particularly close to me- Petra was one of them, they might try and target the other three. Petra mentioned one of them today: Auruo."

"Hmm." Eren looks thoughtful, clinking his silverware against the bowl, much to Levi's ire. "I guess we can tell Mikasa and see what she wants to do about it. What exactly did you do, anyway?"

Levi purses his lips and stares silently at Eren across the table. Eren sighs, standing up to grab the empty bowls and dump them in the sink.

"Why do you still have to be so secretive? It's not like there's any need  _now—"_

"Now that I'm  _dead?"_ Levi challenges, echoing the bitterness in Eren's voice. "Since when have I been an open book, huh? Have I ever been one to throw around information that's my own?"

Eren snorts derisively, undeterred. "No, you haven't. You've always planned on taking your damn secrets to the grave, haven't you? I thought since you were already practically there, maybe you wouldn't let them drag you down but  _clearly_  I was wrong."

"Then yeah you were, Eren. Interrogate me all you want, you naive  _child_ , I'm not saying shit. This isn't kindergarten and I'm not about to spill my guts onto pink-lined paper with little hearts and slip it under your door like a school-girl's love letter"

Eren's eyes go wide and the anger is replaced with a series of vaguely flustered emotions that settles finally on a prominent flush that stretched to his ears. He futilely mouthed something before flinging himself towards the refrigerator and opening the door with so much force that for a moment Levi thinks he might actually break it.

By the time he pulls his head out of the fridge, the flush is gone and Eren stalks out the room with a soda in hand, consciously avoiding Levi's gaze. He walks past his chair toward the hallway, careful not to bump into him.

"You're right. Sorry for bringing it up." he mumbles, making way toward his bedroom. Levi watches him go in utter confusion, allowing his mouth to hang open slightly until it finally occurs to him what just transpired.

He groans out loud, mumbling several swears under his breath as he hunches over and puts his head in his hands.

"This  _cannot_ be for fucking real, right now."

x

Mikasa hears the door open, but doesn't bother looking up from her screen. She pauses in her reading only to push the glasses on her nose back up, even as Annie strips off her jacket and lays it over the back of the couch.

"Guess I'll welcome myself back." the blonde says, kicking off her shoes now. Mikasa frowns.

"Sorry," she says stiffly, fingers gliding across the keyboard as she types something into a word document. "I'm a little focused on something."

Annie makes a  _hmm_ noise in the back of her throat, walking behind Mikasa to see what she was typing up.

"With that Petra Ral case?"

Mikasa actually pauses at this, turning around to meet Annie's gaze. Police uniform still on. She did have to admit Annie looked good in it.

"... Yeah."

Annie exhales, blowing a piece of hair out of her face. "You should really stop wasting your time with it, we investigated and investigated: nothing. As suspicious as it seems-"

"You do your thing, I'll do mine."

Mikasa turns her back on the other again, sounding far colder than she had meant to. It was just- she was really  _onto_ something here, there  _was_ a connection. Once she got that, the murderer was as good as dead.

Annie exhales sharply, leaning over Mikasa's shoulder this time and squinting at the document on screen. Her hot breaths were right next to Mikasa's neck, making her purse her lips.

"What is this? Mikasa, this doesn't even make any sense-"

Suddenly, Mikasa flips the screen of the laptop down, pushing it away with a scowl. Annie raises an eyebrow, and as if sensing it Mikasa says, "My eyes got tired."

She doesn't quite buy it, but doesn't have much more time to dwell on it as Mikasa stands up and shoves the chair out of the way, latching her lips onto Annie's neck. The taller pushes them both backward, steering Annie to the edge of the couch until the backs of her knees hit it and give way.

The breather is short-lived as Mikasa crawls onto her, straddling her lap and mouthing kisses and bites all the way from her jaw to her collarbone. Annie gives out a breathy laugh, resting her hands on Mikasa's waist to slightly slip her thumbs under the waistband of her pants and draw little circles.

"Wow, you wasted no time on that. Guess I forgot about the whole  _uniform-kink_."

Mikasa growls, undoing buttons as she works her way down. Annie watches her, fully aware she'd have to cover up all those angry red marks that would be left over later. Once the last button comes undone Mikasa leans back, admiring her work as Annie breathes heavily, flushed.

"You can stop looking at me like you're about to eat me now, you know."

Mikasa raises an eyebrow, crossing her arms. "Most  _food_ doesn't wear lacy pink bras." her eyes rake back down the blonde's body. "Matching panties?"

"Why don't you find out."

Mikasa grins slyly, unbuttoning Annie's pants and pushing them down. Annie helps the rest of the way, kicking them off her legs.

Yep, matching panties.

Before she can make a snarky comment, Annie has a grip on either side of Mikasa's shirt. "You too." she says, and Mikasa lifts her arms up so the article of clothing can be tossed somewhere off to the side.

Just as she reaches for Mikasa's pants, the other leans forward again to suck on an earlobe. " _Now_  who's the antsy one?"

Pushing her back just slightly, Annie tugs off Mikasa's pants and takes the time to run her hands down her thighs, fingernails scraping just enough to get her to shiver. Mikasa moves her hands to Annie's back, unclasping the bra in one simple, practiced movement as she presses her lips back to her ear.

She pulls away only to toss the bra in the slowly growing pile of clothes off to the side, sliding one hand down and across one breast slowly, enjoying the way Annie hisses as she just barely slips her fingers under the waistline of her pants.

"They're cute until inconvenient, huh?"

Annie grits her teeth, her head brushing against Mikasa's other hand that was curled behind it and she looked up at her. "If they're such a nuisance, take them  _off_."

"I think it's almost more fun this way." she slips them down, pressing two fingers against her with a grin as Annie groans.

" _Fuck_ , Mikasa."

"You can do that later."

She leans forward again, smirking against Annie's neck with every gasp and pant she let out. She's close, Mikasa can feel it; it doesn't help that she knows exactly what to do. Annie's nails scratch at Mikasa's back as Mikasa sucks a mark onto her neck, so  _so_ close.

Annie's never very noisy, but her voice breaks on Mikasa's name as she comes, legs squeezing together and forcing Mikasa to help her ride out the orgasm.

She finally lets out a large, shuddering exhale as her breathing attempts to even out and Mikasa pulls her fingers away, admiring Annie's vulnerable and messy state. She leans forward, pressing their lips together.

" _Welcome home_ , by the way."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, special thanks to teajing on tumblr for beta'ing this, and also for making me have to take out the "u"s in color that she keeps adding. really appreciate your queen's english, jerri.
> 
> (no but really, she's amazing and this fic probably wouldn't exist without her.)
> 
> shorter chapter this time, but I just couldn't see how i could cram anything else into it! things are finally going somewhere with eren and levi though wooohoooo.
> 
> thanks for reading!


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